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Mar 31, 2023
New nanoparticles can perform gene-editing in the lungs
Posted by Dan Breeden in categories: bioengineering, biotech/medical, chemistry, genetics, nanotechnology
Engineers at MIT and the University of Massachusetts Medical School have designed a new type of nanoparticle that can be administered to the lungs, where it can deliver messenger RNA encoding useful proteins.
With further development, these particles could offer an inhalable treatment for cystic fibrosis and other diseases of the lung, the researchers say.
“This is the first demonstration of highly efficient delivery of RNA to the lungs in mice. We are hopeful that it can be used to treat or repair a range of genetic diseases, including cystic fibrosis,” says Daniel Anderson, a professor in MIT’s Department of Chemical Engineering and a member of MIT’s Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research and Institute for Medical Engineering and Science (IMES).
Mar 31, 2023
Could new riboswitch make gene therapy safer?
Posted by Dan Breeden in categories: biotech/medical, chemistry, life extension
Turning genes on and off as easily and predictably as flicking a switch could be a powerful tool in medicine and biotech. A type of technology called a riboswitch might be the key. The Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) in Japan, in collaboration with Astellas Pharma Inc., has developed a new toolkit that uses small molecules to control the activity of a piece of synthetic RNA, and ultimately regulate gene expression. The technology, which was described in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, worked in mammalian cell cultures and in mice.
The ability to precisely control whether a gene is turned on or off is expected to lead to more efficient production of compounds that are made using animal cells, and make gene therapy, cell therapy, and regenerative medicine safer.
For genes to be expressed, cells make many RNA copies of a section of DNA. These RNA copies, called transcripts, are then used to make the protein. This can lead to the introduction of additional genes (either as DNA or RNA) into cells, which can then be used to make new proteins for a wide variety of applications.
Mar 31, 2023
Supply chain cyberattack with possible links to North Korea could have thousands of victims globally
Posted by Genevieve Klien in category: cybercrime/malcode
Hackers modified an enterprise communication company’s installation software in an attack that could steal credentials and other information from companies around the world, according to an analysis published Wednesday.
Researchers with cybersecurity firm SentinelOne’s SentinelLabs team traced illicit activity flagged by its detection systems back to the installation software from a company called 3CX, which according to its website provides video conferencing and online communication products to companies such as Toyota, McDonalds, Pepsi and Chevron. In total, the company says it serves some 12 million customers globally.
This sort of large-scale attack that takes advantage of a company’s supply chain — similar to how attackers leveraged a flaw within a SolarWinds product update to install backdoors inside its customers’ networks — can be difficult to defend against and could lead to devastating consequences for victims. It’s also the kind of operation that is typically associated with a nation-state hacking group.
Mar 31, 2023
Microsoft lays off entire AI ethics team while going all out on ChatGPT
Posted by Claudio Soprano in categories: ethics, robotics/AI
A new report indicates Microsoft will expand AI products, but axe the people who make them ethical.
Mar 31, 2023
Scientists use rocket to create artificial Northern Lights to better understand space weather
Posted by Genevieve Klien in category: satellites
Aurora Borealis can cause damage to satellites in severe solar storms. Scientists are experimenting to understand near-space weather better.
Dune Scene Stars: Kyle MacLachlan, Francesca Annis, Jürgen Prochnow, Silvana Mangano Director: David Lynch Writers: Frank Herbert, David Lynch Producer: Raffaella De Laurentiis Music: TOTO Production: Dino De Laurentiis Company, Estudios Churubusco Azteca S.A. Distributon: Universal Pictures Released: 1984
► watch Dune https://play.google.com/store/movies/details/Dune?id=BB5433C0E07FCF5BMV
Mar 31, 2023
Elon Musk’s Twitter Widens Its Censorship of Modi’s Critics
Posted by Robin Indeededo in category: Elon Musk
Two months ago, Musk said he was too busy to look into his company’s role in mass censorship in India. It’s only gotten worse.
Mar 30, 2023
Allies or enemies of cancer: The dual fate of neutrophils
Posted by Shubham Ghosh Roy in category: biotech/medical
Why do cancer immunotherapies work so extraordinarily well in a minority of patients, but fail in so many others? By analyzing the role of neutrophils, immune cells whose presence usually signals treatment failure, scientists from the University of Geneva (UNIGE), from Harvard Medical School, and from Ludwig Cancer Center have discovered that there is not just one type of neutrophil, but several. Depending on certain markers on their surface, these cells can either promote the growth of tumors, or fight them and ensure the success of a treatment. By boosting the appropriate factors, neutrophils could become great agents of anti-tumor immunity and reinforce the effects of current immunotherapies. These results have been published in the journal Cell.
Immunotherapy involves activating immune cells —mainly T cells—to recognize and destroy cancer cells. While this treatment is very efficient for some patients, and sometimes even exceeds expectations, it is unfortunately not the case in most cases. “The reasons for these failures remain largely unknown,” says Mikaël Pittet, full professor at the UNIGE Faculty of Medicine, holder of the ISREC chair in immuno-oncology, director of the Centre for Translational Research in Onco-Hematology and member of the Ludwig Cancer Center, who directed this work. “This is why deciphering the immune components involved is key to develop more advanced treatments and make immunotherapies a real therapeutic revolution.”
Neutrophils are the most abundant immune cells in the blood and are very useful in infections or injuries by being quickly mobilized to the affected area and releasing antimicrobial factors. In the context of cancer, however, their presence is generally bad news as they promote vascularization and tumor progression.
Mar 30, 2023
Study indicates interleukin-6-dependant pathway dysregulation as a key druggable feature of COVID-19
Posted by Shubham Ghosh Roy in category: biotech/medical
In a recent study on the medRxiv preprint server, researchers identified an interleukin 6 (IL-6) dependent alternative pathway as a therapeutic strategy against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Study: A Complement Atlas identifies interleukin 6 dependent alternative pathway dysregulation as a key druggable feature of COVID-19. Image Credit: MarynaOlyak/Shutterstock.com